‘Just too awesome for words’

No tunes today, just a postcard from the road.

We are home from the Warped Tour stop in Indianapolis, where we found rock ‘n’ roll to be alive and well.

Tuesday was a sun-baked 91-degree day we won’t soon forget.

We started planning this trip during the winter, when our 15-year-old said he wanted to see Sum 41 play live. We found the Warped Tour, then found out another of his faves — Andrew W.K. — also was on the tour. We drove 6 hours to Indy because Evan will be on another trip when the Warped Tour stops in Milwaukee later this month.

Andrew W.K. took the stage first, shortly before noon. Evan got kicked in the face in the mosh pit, but hung in there. Welcome to the big leagues, kid.

Over the last decade, Andrew W.K. has forged a well-deserved reputation as a party-hearty rocker. His 45-minute set was among the best things I’ve seen in a long while. Enthusiastic and energetic doesn’t begin to describe it. Jimmy Buffett and especially you, Sammy Hagar, meet the guy who’ll take your place as the headliner on the summer party tour circuit.

Evan didn’t miss his chance to meet Andrew W.K., either. He bought a T-shirt and was back in line for the mid-afternoon signing.

Andrew W.K. made small talk and graciously listened. When Evan mentioned he’d come all the way from Wisconsin, Andrew W.K. lit up. “My dad’s from Wisconsin!” he said. (It’s true. His father earned his law degree at the University of Wisconsin.)

Then he wrote on Evan’s shirt … “To Evan: Thank you for driving to this party!!! Love, Andrew W.K.”

Then he posed for this picture.

Back at our hotel, Evan posted this on Facebook:

“Today was just too awesome for words.”

Imagine that. You are 15 and meeting your first rock star. He takes a couple of minutes just for you. You get an autograph — neatly written, not scribbled, not illegible — and a picture. He’s a cool guy, a good guy.

“Just too awesome,” indeed.

Think about it. That 15-year-old kid was one of at least 100 people in line in Indy, the 10th stop on a tour that will make 33 more stops over the next five weeks. They line up day after day, one after another, all seeking something. It so easily could have turned out differently. It so easily could have ended in disappointment. That it did not is so special.

So thank you, Andrew, for helping to create that memory.

Oh, and you were wondering about Sum 41?

I was there, too, but I’ll let Evan describe it. They were really loud and they kinda sucked. They didn’t play anything from “Underclass Hero.”

(Photo of Andrew W.K. on stage taken by Evan from the mosh pit.)

(Photo of Evan and Andrew W.K. taken by Dad, with these instructions from Evan: “Do not screw this up.”)